Our Philosophy

Everything is connected.

That is our philosophy in a nutshell. From the smallest microbial life in the soil to the most complex organism on the earth (that is you and me) we are connected. We depend on each other and when we seek to co-exist rather than trying to manage and control, each of us performs better.

Our Story

We started this journey when we planted our first garden many years ago. We weren’t that successful at all. The longer we gardened, the more we learned, often by failure rather than by success. The last few years our learning curve has taken a sharp turn and now we feel that it is time to start giving back some of the knowledge and experience we have gained.

We have also begun to understand the relationship between the soil, plants, the environment and our selves. More and more data confirms our belief that the farming practices and food policies that have been adopted over the course of the last 60 years have done far more damage to our ecology and our health than we have yet realized.

Is it too late to recover and recoup what has been so damaged? We think not. Nature is amazingly resilient. Our philosophy is to return to the concept or working with nature instead of trying to conquer and control it.

“From the earth you sprang and to the earth you must return.”

We are all connected.

Dennis Howard

Dennis is a life long resident of West Texas. He was born in the small panhandle town of Memphis but his parents moved to Lubbock shortly after his birth. He was educated in the Lubbock Public School systems. He and his wife, Penny, raised three children. Christopher and Ashley are their natural offspring and Clemente a foster who they consider to be theirs as well.

Dennis spent the majority of his career as a firefighter with the Lubbock Fire Department, achieving the rank of Lieutenant and retiring after 25 years of service with the City of Lubbock. During his tenure as a firefighter, he also worked in construction as well as nurturing his entrepreneurial skills starting and operating several businesses including a software development company. Dennis continued his education, eventually earning a Masters of Business Administration from Wayland Baptist University. He has performed consulting for small business owners, worked as the financial director for a mid-sized church and operated his own retail business.

Currently he is retired, although that means he stays busy in much different ways. A Certified Texas Master Gardener with advanced training in Vegetables and Greenhouse management, he is also holds a Natural Organic Certification from the Texas Organic Research Center and is a Nationally Accredited Rainwater Catchment System designer and installer by the American Rainwater Catchment System Association.

West Texas Organic Gardening is his brainchild and an outlet for his passion to teach and reach out to gardeners everywhere. His belief that our connection to the health of the soil is directly reflected in our own health is the core of the mission of this web site.

More than anything he works to educate anyone who is interested in the organic lifestyle and how it can have positive and life long benefits to each of us.